disarray

From Middle English disareyen (“to disarray”), from Middle French desarroyer, from Old French desareer, from des- (“dis-”) + areer (“to array”).

• (UK) IPA^(key): /dɪsəˈɹeɪ/

  • Audio (Southern England):

    (file)

• Rhymes: -eɪ

disarray (third-person singular simple present disarrays, present participle disarraying, simple past and past participle disarrayed)

1. (transitive) To throw into disorder; to break the array of.
   • 1726, Elijah Fenton, Odyssey:

     Who with fiery steeds / Oft disarray'd the foes in battle ranged.

2. (transitive) To take off the dress of; to unrobe.
   • 1590, Edmund Spenser, “Book I, Canto VIII”, in The Faerie Queene. , London: ">…] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC, stanza 46:

     So as she bad, that witch they disaraid

• array

disarray (uncountable)

1. Lack of array or regular order; disorder; confusion.
   • 2012 April 15, Phil McNulty, “Tottenham 1-5 Chelsea”, in BBC‎:

     Tottenham pushed forward in an attempt to complete the recovery - but only succeeded in leaving themselves wide open to Chelsea's attacks and Redknapp's side ended in total disarray.

   • 2024 October 30, Paul Bigland, “The heat is on... and will the railway fray?”, in RAIL, number 1021, page 46:

     On leaving the train at Piccadilly, everything goes 'Pete Tong'. Services are in complete disarray, as a tree has come down onto the line at Gatley.

2. Confused attire; undress; dishabille.

• See also Thesaurus:disorder